Air Force Plans Nuke-Powered Spacecraft, Space-Based Power Stations

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An air-to-air front view of an F-15E Strike Eagle aircraft of the 336th Tactical Fighter Squadron.

The United States Air Force plans to institute revolutionary changes over the next fifteen years designed to meet the energy challenges of the twenty-first century.

In a publicly-available official report issued earlier this month, the USAF unveils a sweeping new paradigm for energy science and technology. According to an exhaustive summary at Space.com, the report discloses wide-ranging USAF-backed initiatives to boost energy supply, cut back on demand, and fundamentally alter military protocol to suit cutting-edge mission needs.

Perhaps most significantly, the report—formally titled "Energy Horizons: United States Air Force Energy S&T Vision 2011-2026"—augurs the development of space-based power stations and the use of spacecraft powered by nuclear reactors on Earth.

Space.com highlights the report's prospective model for a Space Solar Power System (SBSP) that might beam solar power to Earth via laser transmission. This radical conception of energy has been in research since the early 1970s.

Major technological advancements in the SBPS method could be completely revolutionary, the report says.